Finnish Immigration Service aims to be better than its predecessor
The Directorate of Immigration will soon be known as the Finnish Immigration Service, and the name change is more than a mere facelift. The new bureau will be more service-oriented, more open and more active as a social actor than its predecessor.
One important step towards transparency will be taken at the beginning of the year with the launch of the Advisory Board for the Finnish Immigration Service. Invited members include immigrant representatives along with the traditional interest groups.
"The task of the advisory board is to discuss the development of the service, to produce associated proposals and for its members to contribute their expertise," says Director-General Jorma Vuorio, who came up with the idea.
The following bodies have been invited to join the Advisory Board:
- City of Helsinki, Department of Immigration
- Finnish League for Human Rights
- Finnish Refugee Council
- Refugee Advice Centre
- Finnish Red Cross
- Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities
- Confederation of Finnish Industries
- Office of the Ombudsman for Minorities
- Finnish Ministry of the Interior, Immigration Department
- Ministry of the Interior, Police Department
- Border Guard
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs
- Joutseno Reception Centre
- Uusimaa Employment and Economic Development Centre
- Advisory Board for Ethnic Relations (2 members + deputies)
- Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions, The Confederation of Unions for Professional and Managerial Staff in Finland, and The Finnish Confederation of Salaried Employees (one shared member)
- National Board of Education
If necessary, the members and tasks of the Advisory Board will be further defined during the spring after the completion of the end report on the review project commissioned by the Ministry of the Interior. Led by Ambassador Ole Norrback, the objective of the project is to develop immigration administration and more specifically, the Finish Immigration Service.
Service via telephone and Web
The aim is to strengthen contacts with new Finns in other ways, too – it is easier to improve the service once customer expectations are known.
"We will start by developing the Web-based feedback channels and by carrying out customer satisfaction questionnaires on our service," says Hanna Koskinen, the new director of customer service.
Electronic services will take a giant leap in 2009 with the introduction of the new cross-government electronic immigration procedure system, UMA. With the new system, customers can monitor their application's progress via Internet.
The telephone service will receive additional personnel first thing in January with the transfer of the switchboard to the service centre of the Ministry of the Interior, as the operators of the old switchboard will then be able to concentrate solely on customer service. On an average day, the Immigration Service receives 670 calls, with the majority precisely related to customer service.
Focus on service attitude across the board
The foundation for the development of services is the recent end report of the customer service work group. The report sets out several practical examples to highlight areas that need attention in the future. The key issue is the service attitude, which will now be cultivated across the board.
"Service attitude means reviewing the operations of the entire bureau and deciding how to improve it from the customer's point of view: what services should be developed, what kind of quality gauges are needed, how to measure customer satisfaction," Koskinen explains.
Processing times and contents must not be overlooked, but they should be reviewed as part of a whole when talking about services. Interaction with customers is equally important, and providing good service does not take any longer than poor service.
"Good service is a reflection of our other expertise," Koskinen believes.
31.12.2007
